Price tag



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PRICE TAG Filed Feb. 9, 1940 adapted to feed gang strips of such tags, to

Patented Aug. 12, 1941 PRICE TAG Alonzo K. Marsh, Summit, N. J., assgnor to A.

Kimball Company, New York, N; Y., a corporation of New York Application February 9, 1940, Serial No. 318,033

1 Claim.

This invention relates to price tags, and pertains more particularly to improvements in price tags of the type illustrated and described in- Letters Patent No. 1,855,765, dated April 26, 1932.

Such price tags are designed to cooperate functionally with marking machines such as illustrated and described in Letters Patent No. 1,837,450, da\ted December 22, 1931, which are print suitable price indicia on each individual tag, and. to sever individual tags from the strips.

In recent years there has been an increasing demand in the trade for price tags having a detachable section, which said section is usually indicated by a line or lines of perforations along which the tag may be torn to remove the detachable section. In using such tags, When a sale is made the tag remains fastened tothe merchandise sold, but the detachable section is sent to the accounting department where it is uti lized for certain accounting purposes which it is unnecessary to describe herein. However, it will be understood that an essential element in the system is the printing of the price indicia in duplicate on such tag, once on the body of the tag which remains on the merchandise. and once on the detachable section. Heretofore in printing such tags it has been customary to set two sets of type in the type chase of the marking machine, one set being located to print price indicia on the body of the tag, and the other set being located to print similar indicia on the detachable section.

This practice has been objectionable for two reasons, first, because of the time consumed in setting duplicate sets of type, and second and more important, because of errors made in set ting the duplicate sets of type, that is, the two sets sometimes do not agree.

I propose to avoid these objections by using a single set of type, and causing said single set of type to print twice on each tag, once on the body of the tag and once on the detachable section. It is an object of the present invention to provide a gang tag strip which may be fed through the usual marking machine, which said strip is so constructed as to cause the machine to print twice on each tag, but to sever said strip only between full tag widths.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

A preferred embodiment of the invention selected for purposes of illustration is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which,

The figure is a perspective view of a gang tag strip embodyng the invention.

Referring to the drawing, the gang tag strip is generally similar to the strip shown in Letters Patent No. 1,855,765 before referred to. As in said patent, the individual tag lengths 2 may be indicated by rounded corners 3, and each tag is provided with a staple 4 having prongs 5. It will be noted, however, that the slits 6 which extend inwardly from the free or unstapled edge of the strip are relatively somewhat shorter than the corresponding slits shown in the patent, but said slits serve the same function nevertheless, namely, to provide accurately spaced abutments for engagement by the feed mechanism of the marking machine. Furthermore, slits 6, aligned with slits 6, extend inwardly from the stapled edge of the strip, so that the uncut sections 1 which connect the individual tags lic somewhat nearer the unstapled edge of the strip than the corresponding uncut portions of the patent.

Each tag of the strip is also provided with a slit 8 extending inwardly from the unstapled edge of the strip. The said slits 8 form additional accurately spaced abutments for engagement by the feed mechanism of the marking machine, with the result that when the strips are. placed in the marking machine, the feed mechanism engages the slits 6 and 8 alternately, thus causing the strip to be fed one half of its Width on each movement of the feed mechanism. Consequently, since such marking machines are arranged to print once for each movement of the feed mechanism, the price indicia is printed on the detachable section and again on the body of the ticket.

Such marking machines are also arranged to sever the uncut sections 1 and the knife which performs the severing operation is also actuated on each movement of the feeding mechanism. Therefore, in order to prevent the knife from cutting the body of the ticket which is to be retained on the merchandise, the transverse line of perforations 9 which form a weakened line at the upper edge of the detachable section is located between the uncut section 1 and the stapled edge of the strip and intersects the slit 6. Preferably, the slits 8extend inwardly as shown so that the inner ends of the slits lie closer to the unstapled edge of the strip than the uncut sections l. When the slits 8 are so extended, it will be understood that the knife will not cut at all, but will merely descend into the slit, but even if the slits are not so extended,

the knife will merely cut an extension of the s1it 8 without cutting the body of the tag.

If desired, the uncut sections 1 may be weakened by perforations as shown, so that individua1 tags may be tom from the strip by hand when circumstances require.

It will be understood that the invention may be variousiy modified and embodied within the scope of. the subjoined claim.

I claim as my invention:

A gang price tag strip comprising a series of tags Provided with attaching means at one edge and partially severed from each other by pairs of aligned slits extending inwardly from opposite edges of the strip, each of said tags being provided midway between the edges of the tag with a slit extending into the body of the tag from the edge of the strip Which is free of said attaching means, and each of said tags being provided with a. weakened line extending transversely of said tag and intersecting one of said aligned s1its which extends inwardly from the edge of the strip which carries said attaching means, the unsevered portions of said strip which connect adjacent tags being located opposite said slits which extend into the body of the tag whereby the cutting knife which severs adjacent tags may enter said last named s1its without cutting the tag.

ALONZO K. MARSH. 

